environmental indicators by oecd

7/29/2019 Environmental Indicators by Oecd

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Contact: Myriam Linster - OECD Environment DirectorateEnvironmental Performance and Information Division

2, rue Andr Pascal, 75775 Paris CEDEX 16 +33 - (0)1 - 45 24 97 44, Fax: +33 - (0)1 - 44 30 61 81

e-mail: [email protected]

internet: http://www.oecd.org/env/


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OECD environmental indicators

- 3 - OECD 2003

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OECD WORK ON ENVIRONMENTAL INDICATORS...................................................... ..........................4

PURPOSE AND SCOPE................................................................................................................................. 4

APPROACH AND RESULTS ........................................................................................................................... 4

LINKS WITH NATIONAL AND OTHER INTERNATIONAL INITIATIVES ..................................................................... 5

SEVERAL TYPES OF INDICATORS.................................................................................................................. 6CORE ENVIRONMENTAL INDICATORS (CEI): THE OECD CORE SET ............................ .....................8

PURPOSE AND CHARACTERISTICS ............................................................................................................... 8

FRAMEWORK AND STRUCTURE.................................................................................................................... 8KEY ENVIRONMENTAL INDICATORS (KEI)..........................................................................................10

PURPOSE AND CHARACTERISTICS ............................................................................................................. 10 FRAMEWORK AND STRUCTURE.................................................................................................................. 10

SECTORAL ENVIRONMENTAL INDICATORS (SEI)................... .............................. .............................11

PURPOSE AND CHARACTERISTICS ............................................................................................................. 11

FRAMEWORK AND STRUCTURE.................................................................................................................. 11INDICATORS DERIVED FROM ENVIRONMENTAL ACCOUNTING.......................... ............................12

INDICATORS DERIVED FROM NATURAL RESOURCE ACCOUNTS..................................................................... 12

INDICATORS DERIVED FROM ENVIRONMENTAL EXPENDITURE ACCOUNTS ..................................................... 12DECOUPLING ENVIRONMENTAL INDICATORS (DEI) ............................ .............................. ...............13

PURPOSE AND CHARACTERISTICS ............................................................................................................. 13

FRAMEWORK AND STRUCTURE.................................................................................................................. 13USING ENVIRONMENTAL INDICATORS.......................... ............................. ............................. ...........14

GUIDING PRINCIPLES ................................................................................................................................ 14

MEASURABILITY AND DATA QUALITY........................................................................................................... 15

ENVIRONMENTAL INDICATORS AND PERFORMANCE ANALYSIS...................................................................... 15PROSPECTS AND FUTURE WORK.......................................................................................................17Annexes:Annex I. Environmental indicators the OECD mandate 20Annex II. The Pressure-State-Response (PSR) model 21Annex III. OECD Core environmental indicators (CEI): Overview of the Core Set by Environmental Issue 22Annex IV. OECD key environmental indicators (KEI) 24Annex V. OECD Sets of Sectoral environmental Indicators (SEI) 25Annex VI.

Selected extracts from Towards sustainable development - Environmental indicators, 2001 29

Annex VII. Indicators in OECD Environmental Performance reviews: Selected Examples 31Annex VIII. Environmental Information and Indicators List of Major OECD Publications and Documents 36Boxes:Box 1. Functions and definitions of environmental indicators 5Box 2. Criteria for selecting environmental indicators 5Box 3. OECD sets of environmental indicators 6Box 4. OECD environmental indicators - Purpose and use 7Box 5 Structure of the OECD indicators Core Set by environmental issue 8Box 6. Sectors in the OECD Core Set 9Box 8 Framework of OECD sets of sectoral indicators 11Box 9. The concept of decoupling 13Box 10. Environmental indicators and performance analysis 16


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OECD 2003 - 4 -

OECD WORK ON ENVIRONMENTAL INDICATORS

Over the past 30 years, environmental policies and related reporting activities adopted by OECD countries have

steadily evolved. This evolution has been largely driven by increased public awareness of environmental issues, theirinternational aspects and their linkages with economic and social issues. Initially the demand for environmentalinformation was closely related to the definition and implementation of environmental policies and their effects on thestate of the environment. Over the years, policy priorities evolved, as did demands for reliable, harmonised and easilyunderstandable information, not only from the environmental community but also from other public authorities,businesses, the general public, environmental NGOs and other stakeholders. At the same time, international activitiesand co-operation on the environment continued to grow.

This has stimulated a number of countries to produce environmental information that is more responsive to policyneeds and public information requirements. The aim is to further strengthen countries capacity to monitor and assessenvironmental conditions and trends so as to increase their accountability and to evaluate how well they are satisfyingtheir domestic objectives and international commitments. In this context, environmental indicators are cost-effectiveand valuable tools.

PURPOSE AND SCOPE

Indicators can be used at international and national levels in state of the environment reporting, measurementof environmental performance and reporting on progress towards sustainable development. They can furtherbe used at national level in planning, clarifying policy objectives and setting priorities. The OECD work onenvironmental indicators is designed

1to:

i contribute to the harmonisation of individual initiatives of OECD Member countries in the field ofenvironmental indicators by developing a common approach and conceptual framework; assist in furtherdevelopment and use of environmental indicators in OECD Member countries; and promote the exchange ofrelated experience with non members and other international organisations;

i support the OECDs policy analysis and evaluation work by developing core sets of reliable, measurableand policy-relevant environmental indicators to:

measure environmental progress and performance,

monitor policy integration, and

allow effective international comparisons;

The OECD work focuses mainly on indicators to be used in national, international and global decision making, yetthe approach may also be used to develop indicators at sub-national or ecosystem level. The actualmeasurement of indicators at these levels is encouraged and lies within the responsibility of individual countries.

APPROACH AND RESULTS

The development of harmonised international environmental indicators is done in close co-operation withOECD member countries. It uses a pragmatic approach, recognising that there is no universal set of indicators;rather, several sets exist, serving several purposes and audiences. OECD work led in particular to:

i agreement on a common conceptual framework, based on a common understanding of concepts anddefinitions and on the pressure-state-response (PSR) model (Box 1, Annex II. );

i

identification of criteria to help in selecting indicators and validating their choice: all indicators are reviewedaccording to their policy relevance, analytical soundness and measurability (Box 2);

i identification and definition of indicators;

i provision of guidance for the use of indicators in connection with the evaluation of environmentalperformance, stressing that indicators are only one tool and have to be interpreted in context to acquire theirfull meaning (page );

i agreement to use the OECD approach at national level by adapting it to national circumstances.

PUBLICATION AND USE

Those indicators for which internationally comparable data exist are regularly published and used in OECDwork, particularly in environmental performance reviews. They are a way to monitor the integration of economicand environmental decision making, to analyse environmental policies and to gauge the results.

1 see AnnexI. for details about the OECD mandate.


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- 5 - OECD 2003

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Beyond this application, they also contribute to thebroader objective of reporting on sustainabledevelopment and to the elaboration of sustainabledevelopment indicators.

A DYNAMIC PROCESSNone of the OECD indicator sets is necessarilyfinal or exhaustive in character; they are regularlyrefined and may change as scientific knowledge,policy concerns and data availability progress.

LINKS WITH NATIONAL AND OTHERINTERNATIONAL INITIATIVES

The indicator development has built on OECDexperience in environmental information andreporting since the 1970s and on leadership ofseveral OECD countries. It has benefited from strongsupport from all member countries and their

representatives in the OECD Working Group onEnvironmental Information and Outlooks.

Results of OECD work, and in particular its conceptualframework, have in turn influenced similar activities by a numberof countries and international organisations. Continued co-operation is taking place in particular with: the United NationsStatistics Division (UNSD), the UN Commission for SustainableDevelopment (UNCSD) and UN regional offices; the UnitedNations Environment programme (UNEP); the World Bank, theEuropean Union (Commission of the European Communities,Eurostat, the European Environment Agency-EEA) and with anumber of international institutes. Such co-operation is essentialto achieve synergies, to help identifying commonalities and toclarify the specific purposes of the various initiatives. Co-

operation and exchange of experience is also taking place withnon OECD countries, and in particular with Russia and China.

Box 2. Criteria for selecting environmental indicators

As indicators are used for various purposes, it is necessary to define general criteria for selecting indicators and validating their choice.Three basic criteria are used in OECD work: policy relevance and utility for users, analytical soundness, and measurability.*

Q P G D 8 ` S @ G @ W 6 I 8 @

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V U D G D U ` A P S V T @ S T

An environmental indicator should:

i Provide a representative picture of environmental conditions, pressures on the environment or societysresponses;

i be simple, easy to interpret and able to show trends over time;

i

be responsive to changes in the environment and related human activities;i provide a basis for international comparisons;

i be either national in scope or applicable to regional environmental issues of national significance;

i have a threshold or reference value against which to compare it, so that users can assess the significanceof the values associated with it.

6 I 6 G ` U D 8 6 G

T P V I 9 I @ T T An environmental indicator should:

i be theoretically well founded in technical and scientific terms;

i be based on international standards and international consensus about its validity;

i lend itself to being linked to economic models, forecasting and information systems.

H @ 6 T V S 6 7 D G D U ` The data required to support the indicator should be:i readily available or made available at a reasonable cost/benefit ratio;

i adequately documented and of known quality;

i updated at regular intervals in accordance with reliable procedures.

Extract from Environmental indicators for environmental performance reviews, OECD, 1993.

*These criteria describe the ideal indicator; not all of them will be met in practice.

Box 1. Functions and definitions of environmental indicators

The OECD terminology points to two major functions of indicators:

i they reduce the number of measurements and parameters that

normally would be required to give an exact presentation of asituation.As a consequence, the size of an indicator set and the level of detailcontained in the set need to be limited. A set with a large number ofindicators will tend to clutter the overview it is meant to provide.

i they simplify the communication process by which the results ofmeasurement are provided to the user.Due to this simplification and adaptation to user needs, indicators maynot always meet strict scientific demands to demonstrate causalchains. Indicators should therefore be regarded as an expression of"the best knowledge available".

DEFINITIONSi Indicator: a parameter, or a value derived from parameters, which

points to, provides information about, describes the state of aphenomenon/environment/area, with a significance extending beyondthat directly associated with a parameter value.

i

Index: a set of aggregated or weighted parameters or indicators.i Parameter: a property that is measured or observed.


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OECD 2003 - 6 -

SEVERAL TYPES OF INDICATORS

OECD work on environmental indicators, initiated in 1989, includes several categories of indicators, eachcorresponding to a specific purpose and framework (Box 3, Box 4):

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8 P S @ @ I W D S P I H @ I U 6 G D I 9 D 8 6 U P S T

&(, are designed to help track environmentalprogress and the factors involved in it, and analyse environmental policies. The OECD CoreSet is a set commonly agreed upon by OECD countries for OECD use. It is publishedregularly. The Core Set, of about 50 indicators, covers issues that reflect the mainenvironmental concerns in OECD countries. It incorporates core indicators derived fromsectoral sets and from environmental accounting. Indicators are classified following the PSRmodel: indicators of environmental pressures, both direct and indirect; indicators ofenvironmental conditions; indicators of societys responses.

D I A P S H D I B U C @ Q V 7 G D 8 F @ ` @ I W D S P I H @ I U 6 G D I 9 D 8 6 U P S T .(,endorsed by OECD Environment Ministers, area reduced set of core indicators, selected from the OECD Core Set, that serve widercommunication purposes. They inform the general public and provide key signals to policy-makers.

Q S P H P U D I B D I U @ B S 6 U D P I T @ 8 U P S 6 G @ I W D S P I H @ I U 6 G D I 9 D 8 6 U P S T 6 ( , are designed to help integrate

environmental concerns into sectoral policies. Each set focuses on a specific sector(transport, energy, household consumption, tourism, agriculture). Indicators are classifiedfollowing an adjusted PSR model reflecting: sectoral trends of environmental significance; theirinteractions with the environment (including positive and negative effects); and relatedeconomic and policy considerations.

D I 9 D 8 6 U P S T 9 @ S D W @ 9 A S P H @ I W D S P I H @ I U 6 G 6 8 8 P V I U D I B are designed to helpintegrate environmental concerns into economic and resource management policies. Focus ison: environmental expenditure accounts; physical natural resource accounts, related tosustainable management of natural resources; and physical material flow accounts, related tothe efficiency and productivity of material resource use.

H P I D U P S D I B Q S P B S @ T T

U P X 6 S 9 T T V T U 6 D I 6 7 G @

9 @ W @ G P Q H @ I U

9 @ 8 P V Q G D I B @ I W D S P I H @ I U 6 G D I 9 D 8 6 U P S T '(, measure the decoupling ofenvironmental pressure from economic growth. In conjunction with other indicators used inOECD country reviews, they are valuable tools for determining whether countries are on tracktowards sustainable development. Most DEIs are derived from other indicator sets and

further broken down to reflect underlying drivers and structural changes.

Box 3. OECD sets of environmental indicators

CoreEnvironmental

Indicators(CEI)

The OECD

Core Set~40-50 core indicators

Socio-economic &general indicators

Environmental issues

published

regularly

supplemented with:used in:

Key environmentalindicators (KEI)(~10-13 key indicators)

Monitoringenvironmental

progress

Reviewingenvironmentalperformance

Informing the public

Measuring progresstowards sustainable

development

Decoupling

EnvironmentalIndicators (DEI)

adapted by

countries

to suitto suit

nationalnational

circumstancescircumstances

refinedregularly

Environmental Data

Environmental Accounting Environmental expenditure Natural resource accounts

Material flow accounts

SectoralEnvironmentalIndicators (SEI)

One set per sector Transport

Energy Agriculture

Household consumption Tourism

All OECD indicator sets are closely related to each other; the Core Set represents a common minimum set that also providesthe basis for the small set of key indicators that are used for public communication purposes. Countries are encouraged to adaptthem to suit their national circumstances.


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OECD 2003 - 8 -

CORE ENVIRONMENTAL INDICATORS (CEI): THE OECD CORE SET

PURPOSE AND CHARACTERISTICS

The OECD Core Set of environmental indicators is a commonly agreed upon minimum set of indicators forOECD countries and for international use, published regularly. It is a first step in tracking environmentalprogress and the factors involved in it, and it is a major tool for analysing environmental policies and measuringenvironmental performance. Characteristics of the Core Set are that:

i it is of limited size: around 40 to 50 core indicators common to a majority of OECD countries and common todifferent sets of indicators serving different purposes (Annex III. );

i it covers a broad range of environmental issues;

i it reflects an approach common to a majority of OECD countries.

It thus provides a base of comparable information that is useful to respond to common policy goals and towhich countries can add to suit their circumstances.

Most core indicators can be calculated on the basis of environmental data collected regularly by the OECDSecretariat from national authorities through the questionnaire on the state of the environment

2and from other

OECD and international sources. These data are treated, harmonised and their quality checked with countries.

FRAMEWORK AND STRUCTURE

The conceptual framework adopted for the Core set of environmental indicators comprises two dimensions.

n First, it uses the Pressure-State-Response model which provides a first classification of indicators intoindicators of environmental pressures, both direct and indirect, indicators of environmental conditions andindicators of societal responses (Annex II. ).

o Second, it distinguishes a number of environmental issues which reflect major environmentalpreoccupations and challenges in OECD countries. Thus, for each issue, indicators of environmental pressure,

conditions and societal responses were defined (Box 5).

Box 5 Structure of the OECD indicators Core Set by environmental issue

PRESSURE STATE RESPONSE

Major issues

Indicators ofenvironmental

pressures

Indicators ofenvironmental

conditions

Indicators ofsocietal

responses

1. Climate change2. Ozone layer depletion3. Eutrophication4. Acidification5. Toxic contamination6. Urban environmental quality

7. Biodiversity8. Cultural landscapes9. Waste

10. Water resources11. Forest resources12. Fish resources13. Soil degradation

(desertification, erosion)

14. Material resources

15. Socio-economic, sectoraland general indicators

2 Used jointly with the Statistical Office of the European Commission (Eurostat) and in co-operation with UNSD.


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- 9 - OECD 2003

The first nine issues relate to the use of the environments sink capacity, dealing with aspects ofenvironmental quality, whereas the other issues relate to the environments resource function, focusing onthe quantity aspect of natural resources.

Most of these issues are of a horizontal, cross-media nature. They are complemented with a category that

reflects general background variables and driving forces, such as population growth, demographic patterns,and economic growth; selected sectoral trends and patterns of environmental significance, as well aseconomy-wide environmental expenditure and public opinion. This category groups indicators that, thoughimportant, cannot be attributed to a specific issue, and also provides an opportunity to integrate core indicatorsfrom sectoral sets into the Core Set.

The list of issues covered is not seen as final nor exhaustive. It may change as scientific knowledge and policyconcerns evolve. Furthermore, the issues are of varying relevance for different countries and different contexts.A certain balance is however kept between the need for flexibility and the need for longer term monitoring andanalysis. It is expected that each country will supplement the core set with additional indicators of particularinterest, and that over time the list will be expanded with indicators of progress at the social-environmentinterface.

SECTORAL BREAKDOWN

Core indicators can further be disaggregated at sectoral level. Data availability permitting, this is one tool foranalysing environmental pressures exerted by different economic sectors and distinguishing governmentresponses from those of the business sector or private households.

Indicators at sectoral level facilitate the link with economic information systems and models. They are useful inreviewing the integration of environmental and sectoral policies, in monitoring resource use and emissionintensities in the various economic sectors, and in measuring decoupling of environmental pressures fromeconomic growth.

Box 6. Sectors in the OECD Core Set

BUSINE

SS

RESPONSESTATEPRESSURE

Climate change

...

Biodiversity

Waste

Water resources

Forest resources

Fish resources

...

Socio-economic &sectoral indicators

MANUF

.NDU

STRY

HOUS

EHOLDS

HOUSEHO

LDS

AGRICU

LTURE

GOVE

RNMENT

......

......

industryag

riculture

......

TERRITORIAL BREAKDOWN

Core indicators can also be disaggregated at territorial level. Data availability permitting, this is one tool foranalysing the territorial dimensions of environmental management and performance, identifying majordistributive issues and revealing sub-national differences that are hidden when national level indicators areused.


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OECD 2003 - 10 -

KEY ENVIRONMENTAL INDICATORS (KEI)


To respond to the increasing interest by Member countries in a reduced number of indicators selected fromexisting larger sets to capture key trends and draw public attention to key issues of common concern, a smallset of key environmental indicators has been selected from the OECD Core Set. In May 2001, this set hasbeen endorsed by environment ministers of OECD countries for systematic use in the OECDs communicationand policy work.

These key indicators have been very useful in charting environmental progress and their selection hasbenefited from experience gained in using environmental indicators in the OECDs country environmentalperformance reviews.

Like other indicator lists, the list of key indicators is neither final, nor exhaustive; it has to be seen together withother indicators from the OECD Core Set, and will evolve as knowledge and data availability improve.Ultimately, the set is expected to also include key indicators for issues such as toxic contamination, land and

soil resources, and urban environmental quality.


Key environmental indicators are classified according to the PSR model with a focus on pollution and naturalresource issues and on environmental pressures and conditions.

OECD CORE SET OFENVIRONMENTAL INDICATORS

Pressuresi

Indexofgreenhousegasemissions**

i

CO2emissions

i

CH4,N2O,CFCemissionsConditions

i

Atmosphericconcentrationsof GHG**;Globalmeantemperature**Responses

i

Energyeffi ciency**

i

Energyintensity

Climatechange

i

Economicandfiscali nstruments(pricesandtaxes,expenditures)

Pressuresi

Indexofapparentconsumptionofozonedepletingsubstances(ODP)**

i ApparentconsumptionofCFCs/and halonsConditions

i

Atmosphericconcentrationsof ODP**;GroundlevelUV-Bradiation**

i

Stratosphericozonelevels

Ozonelayerdepletion

Responsesi

CFCrecoveryrate**

Pressuresi Emissionsof NandPin waterandsoil Nutrientbal ance**

i

NandP fromfertilizeruseandfromlivestockConditions

i

BOD/DO,concentrationof N& Pin inlandwaters**,i nmarinewaters**

Responsesi

Populationconnectedto biologicaland/orchemicalsewagetreatmentplants**

i

Populationconnectedto sewagetreatmentplants

i

Userchargesfor wastewatertreatment

Eutrophication

i

Marketshareofphosphate-freedetergents

Pressuresi

Indexofacidifyingsubstances**

i

Emissionsof NOxandSOxConditions

i

Exceedanceofcriticalloadsof pHin water&soil**

i

Concentrationsin acidprecipitation

Responsesi

%ofcar fleetequippedwithcatalyticconverters**

Acidification

i

Capacityof SOxandNOxabatementequipmentof stationarysources**

Pressuresi

Emissionsof heavymetals**;oforganiccompounds**

i

Consumptionofpesticides

Conditionsi

Concentr.ofheavymetals& org.compoundsinenvironmentalmedia&inliving species**

i

ConcentrationofheavymetalsinriversResponses

i

Changesoftoxic contentsin productsandproductionprocesses**

Toxiccontamination

i

Marketshareofunleadedpetrol

Pressuresi

Urbanairemissions(SOx,NOx,VOC)**

i

Urbantrafficdensity(ornational);Urbancarownership(ornational)

i

Degreeofurbanisation(urbanpopulationgrowthrates,urbanland)

Conditionsi

Populationexposuretoairpollution,to noise**

i

Concentrationsof airpollutants

i

Ambientwaterconditionsinurbanareas**

Responsesi

Greenspace** (Areasprotectedfromurbandevelopment)i

Economic,fiscaland regulatoryinstruments**

Urbanenvironmentalquality

i

Watertreatmentandnoiseabatementexpenditure

Pressuresi

Habitatalterationandland conversionfromnaturalstate**

Conditionsi

Threatenedorextinctspeciesasa shareoftotalspeciesknown**

i

Areaofkeyecosystems**

Responsesi Protectedareasas% ofnationalterritory,andbytypeof ecosystem**

Biodiversity

i

Protectedspeci es

Cultural landscapes Indicatorstobe furtherdeveloped

Pressuresi

Generationofwaste**(municipal,i ndustrial, hazardous,nucl ear)

i

MovementsofhazardouswasteResponses

i

Wasteminimisati on** (tobefurtherdeveloped)

i

Recyclingrates

Waste

i

Economicandfiscali nstruments,expenditures

Pressuresi

Intensityofuseofwaterresources**Conditions

i

Frequency,durationandextentofwatershortages**

Waterresources

Responsesi

Waterpricesanduserchargesforsewagetreatment**

Pressuresi

Intensityofforestresourceuse**

Conditionsi

Area,volumeandstructureofforests**

Forestresources

Responsesi

Forestareamanagementandprotection**

Pressuresi

Fishcatches**

Conditionsi

Sizeofspawningstocks**

Fishresources

Responsesi

Fishingquotas**

Pressuresi

Erosionrisks:potentialandactualuseof landforagriculture**

i

Changein landuse

Conditionsi

Degreeoftopsoill osses**

Soildegradation(desertification&erosion)

Responsesi

Rehabilitated areas**

Materialresources(newissue)

Pressuresi

IntensityofuseofmaterialresourcesIndicatorstobefurtherdevelopedonthebasisofMFA

P @ 8 9 T @ U P A F @ ` @ I W D S P I H @ I U 6 G D I 9 D 8 6 U P S T

Q

P G G V U D P I D T T V @ T

6 h v y h i y r v q v p h H r q v r v q v p h

Climate change 1. CO2 emission intensities Index of greenhouse gas emissions

2.Ozone layer Indices of apparent consumption of ozonedepleting substances (ODS)

Same, plus aggregation into one index ofapparent consumption of ODS

Air quality 3. SOx and NOx emission intensities Population exposure to air pol lution

4.Waste generation Municipal waste generation intensities Total waste generation intensities,Indicators derived from material flowaccounting

Freshwater quality 5. Waste water treatment connection rates Pollution loads to water bodies

I

6 U V S 6 G S @ T P V S 8 @ T

6 T T @ U T

Freshwaterresources

6. Intensity of use of water resources Same plus sub-national breakdown

Forest resources 7. Intensit y of use of fores t resources Same

Fish resources 8. Intensity of use of f ish resources Same plus closer link to avai lable resources

Energy resources 9. Intensity of energy use Energy efficiency index

Biodiversity 10. Threatened species Species and habitat or ecosystem diversityArea of key ecosystems

______________* indicators for which data are available for amajority of OECD countries and that arepresented in this report

______________** indicators that require further specificationand development (availability of basic datasets, underlying concepts and definitions).

Box 7. Key environmental indicators


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- 11 - OECD 2003

SECTORAL ENVIRONMENTAL INDICATORS (SEI)

PURPOSE AND CHARACTERISTICSThe OECD has been developing sets of sectoral indicators to better integrate environmental concerns intosectoral policies. The objective is to develop a tool kit for sectoral decision makers, which should facilitate theintegration of environmental concerns in sectoral policy making. While limited to a specific sector and itsinteractions with the environment, these indicators are typically developed in larger numbers than the Core Set.Based on experience to date, a small number of core indicators is being included in the OECD Core Set ofenvironmental indicators.

Sectoral indicator sets are not restricted to "environmental indicators" per se but also concern linkagesbetween the environment and the economy, placed in a context of sustainable development. They may includeenvironmental indicators (e.g. pollutant emissions), economic indicators (e.g. sectoral output, prices and taxes,subsidies) and selected social indicators.

FRAMEWORK AND STRUCTUREThe conceptual framework adopted for sectoral indicators (Box 8) is derived from the PSR model, but wasadjusted to account for the specificities of the respective sectors. As defined by OECD countries, sectoralindicators have been organised along a framework that distinguishes:

i indicators reflecting sectoral trends and patterns of environmental significance (i.e. indirect pressures and/orrelated driving forces);

i indicators reflecting interactions between the sector and the environment, including positive and negativeeffects of sectoral activity on the environment (i.e. direct pressures, such as pollutant releases and resourceuse, and related effects and resulting environmental conditions, such as ambient concentrations ofpollutants and population exposure), as well as effects of environmental changes on sectoral activity;

i indicators reflecting economic linkages between the sector and the environment, as well as policyconsiderations. This category includes environmental damage and environmental expenditure, economicand fiscal instruments, regulatory and social instruments, and trade issues.

3. OECD (various years), OECD Series on Environmental Indicators: Indicators for the Integration of Environmental Concerns into Transport Policies

OECD (1993, 2004), OECD Series on Environmental Indicators: Indicators for the Integration of Environmental Concerns into Energy Policies

OECD (1997, 2001, 2004), Environmental Indicators for Agriculture

OECD (1999), OECD Series on Environmental Indicators: Towards more sustainable Household Consumption Patterns Indicators to measure progress

Box 8 Framework of OECD sets of sectoral indicators

This framework, derived from the PSR model, is applied by the OECD to the transport and energy sectors, andto structure work on sustainable consumption indicators. A set of sectoral indicators is also being developed forthe agricultural sector

3. and for the tourism sector. (Annex V. )

Economic and policy aspectsInteractions with the

environment

Sectoral trends and patterns

of environmental significance

Sector related:

x Environmental damage

x Environmental expenditure

x Taxation and subsidies

x Price structures

x Trade aspects

x Regulatory and socialinstruments

Sector related:

x Resource use

x Pollutant &waste generation

x Riskand safety issues

x Related effects and resulting

environmental conditions

x Selected direct responses

Indirect pressures

and

driving forces


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OECD 2003 - 12 -

INDICATORS DERIVED FROM ENVIRONMENTAL ACCOUNTING

Environmental indicators are also derived from the broader area of environmental accounting, in both physical

and monetary terms4. The OECD work focuses on physical natural resource accounts as a tool for sustainablemanagement of natural resources, on material flow accounts as a tool for monitoring the efficiency andproductivity of material resource use, as well as on expenditure for pollution abatement and control and otherenvironmental measures. Work is also done on the use of accounting frameworks as a tool for sustainabledevelopment statistics. In addition, the OECD participates in international work on environmental accountingand acts as a forum for exchanges of experiences in this field.

Environmental accounting: definitions and concepts

Environmental accounting can be defined as the systematic description of interactions between the environmentand the economy by means of an accounting framework. There is no unique model for environmental accounting;approaches vary according to purpose.

Approach Environmental categories taken into account Characteristics

Adjustment of nationaleconomic accounts

Valuation of:i

Environmental damagesi

Environmental servicesi Stock of natural capital

Modifies SNA frameworkand boundaries

Satellite accounts Valuation of:i

Environmental damagesi

Environmental servicesi

Stock of natural capitali

Environmental expenditure

+ Corresponding physical flows and stocks

Complements SNA withoutmodifying itGeneral coherence withSNA

Natural resource andenvironment accounts

i

Physical flows and stocks of natural resourcesi

Physical and monetary flows associated withanthropogenic exploitation of natural resources

Independent from andcomplementary to SNA

INDICATORS DERIVED FROM NATURAL RESOURCE ACCOUNTS

To progress towards a common methodology, the OECD reviewed different approaches of OECD Membercountries in the field of natural resource accounting (NRA). This work resulted in the establishment of OECDpilot accounts on forests and water. The basic methodology used in the pilot accounts is simple and provides aguide to countries that are developing natural resource accounts. The format was set up to provide a tool fordecision makers.

The pilot accounts propose physical input-output tables tracing the production, transformation and use of eachresource throughout the economy. This provides an analytical tool with which to assess the impact of sectoraleconomic activity on the resource. Basic flow relations from these accounts form the input for calculatingindicators of sustainable use of natural resource quantities. Examples of such indicators are: intensity of use offorest resources and intensity of use of water resources. Current work focuses on indicators derived frommaterial resource accounts.

INDICATORS DERIVED FROM ENVIRONMENTAL EXPENDITURE ACCOUNTS

The OECD has pursued work on pollution abatement and control (PAC) and other environmental protectionexpenditure for a number of years. Recent work is done jointly with Eurostat. The data thus developed arepublished regularly and supplement economic information from national accounts. Indicators derived from thiswork reflect the level of PAC expenditure compared with GDP, as well as the structure of such expenditure perenvironmental domain and per source sector.

4 OECD (2003),Special Session on Material FlowAccounting Papers and Presentations

OECD (1996), Environmental Accounting for Decision Making - Summary Report of an OECD Seminar

OECD (1996), Natural Resource Accounts - Taking Stockin OECD Countries

OECD (various years), Pollution Abatement and Control Expenditure in OECD Countries


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DECOUPLING ENVIRONMENTAL INDICATORS (DEI)


Decoupling indicators measure the decoupling of environmental pressure from economic growth over a givenperiod. In conjunction with other indicators used in OECD policy analysis and country reviews, they arevaluable tools for determining whether countries are on track towards sustainable development. They furthersupport the evaluation of environmental performance and monitor the implementation of the OECDEnvironmental Strategy for the first decade of the 21

stcentury. [Box 9]

Many of the variables that feature in decoupling indicators also appear in the concepts of resource efficiency,resource intensity, and resource productivity. For example, resource efficiency and resource intensity arecalculated as ratios of resource use to economic value-added, while resource productivity is the inverse ratio.Decoupling is usually conceived as an elasticity focusing on changes in volumes, whereas efficiency andintensity are more concerned with the actual values of these ratios. Which usage is chosen depends on thecontext and, often, on the audience being addressed.

Most DEIs are derived from other indicator sets, mainly sectoral and core environmental indicators, and from

environmental accounts, and further broken down to reflect underlying drivers and structural changes. Work sofar has sought to establish an analytical basis to facilitate consensus by Member countries on a list ofindicators to be used in OECD peer reviews. It has also identified gaps in the statistical and scientific dataneeding to be filled

5.


The approach used to develop decoupling indicators is seen as a complement to other analytical frameworks.It builds on selected components of the PSR model, with focus on pressures, both direct and indirect, and onpollution and resource issues. Decoupling indicators describe the relationship between the two components ofthe pressure part of the PSR model, i.e. a change in direct or proximate environmental pressure (emissions,discharges, resource use) as compared to the change in driving force (indirect or underlying pressure) over thesame period.

Two major groups of decoupling indicators covering various environmental issues have been explored:

i macro-level decoupling indicators that relate to the decoupling of environmental pressures from totaleconomic activity with a focus on climate change, air pollution, water quality, waste disposal, material andnatural resource use;

i sector specific decoupling indicators that focus on production and use in specific sectors: such as energy,transport, agriculture and manufacturing.

Box 9. The concept of decoupling

The term decoupling refers to breaking the link between environmental bads and economic goods. It refers tothe relative growth rates of a direct pressure on the environment and of an economically relevant variable to whichit is causally linked. Decoupling occurs when the growth rate of the environmental pressure (EP) is less than thatof its economic driving force (DF) over a given period. One distinguishes between absolute and relativedecoupling. Decoupling is said to be absolute when the environmental variable is stable or decreasing while the

economic variable is growing. Decoupling is said to be relative when environmental variable is increasing, but at alower rate than the economic variable.

The decoupling concept has however no automatic link to the environments capacity to sustain, absorb or resistpressures of various kinds (deposition, discharges, harvests). A meaningful interpretationof the relationship of EPto economic DF will require additional information. Also, the relationship between economic DF and EP, moreoften than not, is complex. Most DF have multiple environmental effects, and most EP are generated by multipleDF, which, in turn, are affected by societal responses. Changes in decoupling may thus be decomposed in anumber of intermediate steps. These may include changes in the scale of the economy, in consumption patterns,and in economic structure including the extent to which demand is satisfied by domestic production or byimports. Other mechanisms in the causal chain include the adoption of cleaner technology, the use ofhigher-quality inputs, and the post-facto clean-up of pollution and treatment of waste.

5 OECD (2002) Indicators to measure decoupling of environmental pressure fromeconomicgrowth.


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USING ENVIRONMENTAL INDICATORS

Over the years, the OECD has accumulated practical experience not only in developing, but also in usingenvironmental indicators in its policy work. The indicators are used as a specific tool for evaluating environmentalperformance, and for monitoring the implementation of the OECD Environmental Strategy for the first decade of the21

stcentury.

GUIDING PRINCIPLES

When using environmental indicators in analysis and evaluation, the OECD and its Member countries apply thefollowing commonly agreed upon principles:

P I G ` P I @ U P P G Indicators are not designed to provide a full picture of environmental issues, but rather

to help reveal trends and draw attention to phenomena or changes that require furtheranalyses and possible action.

Indicators are thus only one tool for evaluation; scientific and policy-orientedinterpretation is required for them to acquire their full meaning. They need to besupplemented by other qualitative and scientific information, particularly in explainingdriving forces behind indicator changes which form the basis for an assessment. Oneshould also note that some topics do not lend themselves to evaluation by quantitativemeasures or indicators.

U C @ 6 Q Q S P Q S D 6 U @

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Indicators relevance varies by country and by context. They must be reported andinterpreted in the appropriate context, taking into account countries different ecological,geographical, social, economic and institutional features.

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8 P V I U S `

8 P H Q 6 S D T P I 6 I 9

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Most OECD indicators focus on the national level and are designed to be used in aninternational context. This implies not only nationally aggregated indicators, but also anappropriate level of comparability among countries.

There is no single method of standardisation for the comparison of environmentalindicators across countries. The outcome of the assessment depends on the chosendenominator (e.g. GDP, population, land area) as well as on national definitions andmeasurement methods. It is therefore appropriate for different denominators to be usedin parallel to balance the message conveyed. In some cases absolute values may bethe appropriate measure, for example when international commitments are linked toabsolute values.

Moreover, the choice of the initial level of an environmental pressure and of the timeperiod considered can affect the interpretation of the results, because countries doproceed according to different timetables.

G @ W @ G P A 6 B B S @ B 6 U D P I

Within a country a greater level of detail or breakdown may be needed, particularlywhen indicators are to support sub-national or sectoral decision making. This isimportant, for example, when dealing with river basin or ecosystem management, whenusing indicators describing drivers which are relevant at the local level, or when nationalindicators hide major regional differences.

The actual measurement of indicators at these levels is encouraged and lies within theresponsibility of individual countries. At these levels, however, comparability problemsmay be further exacerbated.


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MEASURABILITY AND DATA QUALITY

Measurability issues such as the quality of underlying data are important in the use of environmental indicators, andmust be taken into account to avoid misinterpretation. Measurability and data quality vary greatly among individualindicators. Some indicators are immediately measurable, others need additional efforts before they can be publishedand used. For example, most indicators of societal responses have a shorter history than indicators of environmentalpressures and many indicators of environmental conditions, and some are still in development both conceptually andin terms of data availability.

U D H @ G D I @ T T

An important criterion affecting the usefulness and relevance of an indicator is thetimeliness of the underlying data. The interval between the period to which data referand the date when data are released should be as short as is practicable. Currenttimeliness of environmental data often remains insufficient for policy evaluation orpublic communication purposes. Unlike some economic data, environmental data lagbehind referring to two or three years (or even more) prior to the current year.

8 P C @ S @ I 8 @ P W @ S U D H @ The availability of coherent data over longer periods is essential to keep track of earlierpolicy measures and to monitor changes over time. To date, the consistency andcompleteness of time series data vary greatly by issue and country, and do often notallow a systematic and meaningful presentation of trends over longer periods.

8 P C @ S @ I 8 @ 6 H P I B 6 I 9

X D U C D I 8 P V I U S D @ T

Coherence or comparability among countries and international harmonisation areessential to make data and indicators meaningful for decision making and performanceevaluation and for allowing policy-makers to make effective international comparisons.Despite significant progress over the past twenty years, differences remain amongcountries as well as within countries where different information sources often providedifferent figures on the same item.

8 P C @ S @ I 8 @ 7 @ U X @ @ I

@ I W D S P I H @ I U 6 G 6 I 9

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T ` T U @ H T

Coherence between environmental and economic information systems is essential to

establish links between environmental and economic variables, to analyseenvironmental pressures exerted by different economic sectors and distinguishgovernment responses from those of the business sector or private households. Todate, breaking environmental indicators down at sectoral level remains difficult becauseof different definitions and classifications used. Further harmonisation work and closerlinks between accounting work and the development of indicators could help toovercome some of these difficulties.

ENVIRONMENTAL INDICATORS AND PERFORMANCE ANALYSIS

Environmental indicators support and illustrate the analysis made in the OECD Country EnvironmentalPerformance Reviews (conducted since 1992) and provide all reviews with a common denominator. This

creates a synergy in which regular feedback is provided on the indicators policy relevance and analyticalsoundness. To date, the environmental performances of all OECD countries and some non members havebeen reviewed, and environmental information and indicators have been assembled for all OECD Membercountries.

It is important to recognise, however, that indicators are not a mechanical measure of environmentalperformance. They need to be complemented with background information, data, analysis and interpretation.One should also note that some issues or topics do not lend themselves to evaluation by quantitativemeasures or indicators.

In the OECD environmental performance reviews, international indicators from the OECD sets (CEI, KEI, SEI)are used in combination with specific national indicators and data, and complemented as appropriate byadditional information (e.g. lists of laws and regulations, economic instruments, and conventions;organigrammes; maps). Whenever possible, both state and trend data are presented for the indicators. Trendsare shown over a decade for most indicators, and over two decades for selected topics to keep track of earlypolicy measures and monitor changes over long periods. (Annex VII. ).


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OECD 2003 - 16 -

Using environmental indicators in environmental performance reviews implies linking these indicators to themeasurement and analysis of achievements, as well as to underlying driving forces and to the countrysspecific conditions. Three broad categories of indicators can be distinguished:

i

Performance indicators linked to quantitative objectives (targets, commitments)Examples of such indicators include e.g. air emission trends relating to national or international targets,urban air quality relating to national standards;

i Performance indicators linked to qualitative objectives (aims, goals)

These indicators generally address the concept of performance in two ways:

i with respect to the eco-efficiency of human activities, linked to the notions of de-coupling, elasticities:e.g. emissions per unit of GDP, relative trends of waste generation and GDP growth; and

i with respect to the sustainability of natural resource use: e.g. intensity of the use of forest resources,intensity of the use of water resources;

i Descriptive indicatorsThese indicators are not linked to explicit national objectives; they describe major conditions and trendsand are close to the concept of state of the environment reporting: e.g. population connected to waste

water treatment plants, river quality, share of threatened species.

INDICATOR PRESENTATION

The presentation of most key and core indicators is standardised over the reviews, though a certain amount offlexibility is allowed to adjust to the individual situation of the reviewed country and also to special topics. Onecan distinguish the following typology:

i International core indicators harmonised at OECD level and presented for the reviewed country togetherwith a few selected OECD countries and OECD and/or OECD Europe averages to reflect the national andinternational picture. These indicators tend to be relevant for most OECD Member countries; they focus onkey issues and often present state data;

i Country specific core indicators that show trends or changes over longer periods, often associated withrelated targets or economic trends; or that provide a more detailed picture of the countrys situation throughfurther sectoral and/or spatial breakdown (e.g. sub-national data).

i

Supplementary country specific information and data that complement the core indicators by pointing atparticular issues of concern for the reviewed country and that help in interpreting the indicators in a broadernational context.

Box 10. Environmental indicators and performance analysis

UNDERLYING DATA SETSUNDERLYING DATA SETS

Results / achievements Objectives

Targets,commitments Aims, goals

ENVIRONMENTALENVIRONMENTAL

PERFORMANCE INDICATORSPERFORMANCE INDICATORS

Core and key indicators Sectoral indicators

ENVIRONMENTAL INDICATORSENVIRONMENTAL INDICATORS

context

interpretation

MEASURING PERFORMANCEANALYSING POLICIES

EVALUATION TOOL

context

interpretationREPORTING TOOLMONITORING TOOL

MEASURING PROGRESS

link to


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- 17 - OECD 2003

PROSPECTS AND FUTURE WORK

Experience shows that environmental indicators are cost-effective and powerful tools for tracking environmentalprogress, providing policy feedback and measuring environmental performance. Over the past ten to 15 years, theyhave gained in importance in many countries and international fora. They have helped to raise the profile ofenvironmental aspects in economic and sectoral decisions and have contributed to the rise of sustainabledevelopment indicators. In a number of OECD countries, they are increasingly used in planning, clarifying policyobjectives and priorities, budgeting, and assessing policy performance.

However, experience also shows significant lags between the demand for environmental indicators, the relatedconceptual work and the actual capacity for mobilising and validating underlying data. Despite important progress inthe field of environmental statistics, differences among countries may be considerable and the establishment ofreliable and internationally comparable data calls for continuous monitoring, analysis, treatment and checking.

Following the conceptual work that laid down the common framework and basic principles for developing sets ofinternational environmental indicators in the OECD context, it is necessary to improve the quality and comparability ofexisting indicators, to continuously refine their definition and measurement, and to continue the development ofindicators responding to new and emerging policy concerns. This necessitates greater policy relevance and increasedquality and timeliness of basic data sets, as well as a closer link between environmental data and existing economicand social information systems. It also necessitates more work to document the indicators and complement them withinformation reflecting sub-national differences.

AREAS FOR PROGRESS

Continued efforts are being done by the OECD to assist in further development and use of environmentalindicators in OECD work and in OECD Member countries, and promote the exchange of related experiencewith non members and other international organisations.

The aim is in particular to:

i Progressively improve the availability and quality of basic data sets with a focus on comparability amongcountries, timeliness and coherence over time, and interpretability

6.

i Link the indicators more closely to domestic goals and international commitments.

i Link the indicators more closely to sustainability issues, including selected social-environmental issues.

i Complement the indicators with information reflecting sub-national differences.

i Further develop concepts for medium term indicators and fill related data gaps.

i Further develop indicators derived from environmental accounting (e.g. intensity of material resource use)and establish closer links between accounting work and the development of indicators.

i Strengthen the use of indicators in policy evaluation and in country environmental performance reviews.

i Monitor indicator aggregation methods in use at national and international level, and produce aggregatedindices when feasible and policy relevant.

6 An OECD initiative on environmental data quality has been launched to ensure the provision of high quality environmental information, to act in common to

overcome remaining deficiencies and to foster international co-operation.


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Annex I. ENVIRONMENTAL INDICATORS THE OECD MANDATE............... ............................20Annex II. THE PRESSURE-STATE-RESPONSE (PSR) MODEL.................. ............................... ...21Annex III. OECD CORE ENVIRONMENTAL INDICATORS (CEI): OVERVIEW OF THE CORE SET

BY ENVIRONMENTAL ISSUE.........................................................................................22Annex IV. OECD KEY ENVIRONMENTAL INDICATORS (KEI)..................... .............................. ....24Annex V. OECD SETS OF SECTORAL ENVIRONMENTAL INDICATORS (SEI)...........................25Annex VI. SELECTED EXTRACTS FROM Towards sustainable development - Environmental

indicators, 2001.............................................................................................................29Annex VII. INDICATORS IN OECD ENVIRONMENTAL PERFORMANCE REVIEWS: SELECTED

EXAMPLES......................................................................................................................31 Annex VIII. ENVIRONMENTAL INFORMATION AND INDICATORS LIST OF MAJOR OECD

PUBLICATIONS AND DOCUMENTS ............................. .............................. ...................36


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OECD 2003 - 20 -

Annex I. ENVIRONMENTAL INDICATORS THE OECD MANDATE

Demand for the development of environmental indicators by OECD has originally been expressed along twocomplementary lines. First, the OECD Council in 1989 called for further work to integrate environment andeconomic decision-making. This was reiterated in consecutive G-7 summits and led to the approval of anOECD Council Recommendation on Environmental Indicators and Information by OECD Governments in 1991.Second, in 1991 the OECD has been entrusted by its Member countries to carry out environmentalperformance reviews with the principal aim of helping member countries to improve their individual andcollective performance in environmental management

OECD work on environmental indicators derives its mandate from:

an OECD Council meeting at ministerial level (1989), in which Ministers called for a programme thatwould integrate environmental and economic decision-making more systematically and effectively;

G-7 economic summits in Paris (1989) and Houston (1990);

an OECD Council Recommendation on Environmental Indicators and Information (1991), asking to"further develop core sets of reliable, readable, measurable and policy-relevant environmentalindicators in order to contribute to:

better measuring environmental performance, with respect to environmental quality,environmental goals and international agreements, such as those concerning the reduction ofpollutants emissions;

better integrating environmental concerns in sectoral policies such as agriculture, forestry,industry, aid, energy, transport, trade and urban policies;

better integrating environment and macro-economic decision-making; this will requiredeveloping and linking environmental accounts and economic accounts;

and to encourage the use of these environmental indicators in appropriate OECD reviews, suchas state of the environment reports and outlooks; economic or sectoral OECD country surveys.

a communiqu in 1996 by OECD Environment Ministers urging the OECD to further develop its work

on environmental indicators, in particular in the context of environmental performance reviews, toallow effective international comparison by policy-makers.;

the Shared Goals for Action of the OECD Environment Ministers of 3 April 1998 which highlight thefollowing priority area for OECD work: ...further develop and adopt a comprehensive set of robustindicators to measure progress towards sustainable development, in concert with sustainabledevelopment indicator initiatives of other international agencies, to be used in country reviews andoutlook reports, including in the second cycle of environmental performance reviews; ...,

an OECD Council Recommendation on Environmental Information (1998), asking to "developaccounting systems and new indicators to enable better assessment of progress towards sustainabledevelopment ";

an OECD Council meeting at ministerial level (2001), in which Ministers asked the OECD to developagreed indicators to measure progress across all three dimensions of sustainable development,including indicators that can measure the decoupling of economic growth from environmental

degradation.

the OECD Environmental Strategy for the First Decade of the 21st

Century adopted by OECDEnvironment Ministers (2001) that, under its objective Improving information for decision making:Measuring progress through indicators, requests the OECD to further develop the work onindicators, in particular through the revision of the core set of environmental indicators, headlineindicators and indicators for policy integration, including the social and environmental interface, thedevelopment of targets and early warning indicators, and contribute to OECD sustainabledevelopment indicators.


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Annex II. THE PRESSURE-STATE-RESPONSE (PSR) MODEL

The PSR model has initially been developed by the OECD to structure its work on environmental policies and reporting. Itconsiders that: human activities exert pressures on the environment and affect its quality and the quantity of natural resources

(state); society responds to these changes through environmental, general economic and sectoral policies and throughchanges in awareness and behaviour (societal response).

i The PSR model highlights these cause-effect relationships, and helps decision makers and the public see environmental,economic, and other issues as interconnected. It thus provides a means of selecting and organising indicators (or state ofthe environment reports) in a way useful for decision-makers and the public, and of ensuring that nothing important hasbeen overlooked.

i The PSR model has the advantage of being one of the easiest frameworks to understand and use, and of being neutral inthe sense that it just says which linkages exist, and not whether these have negative or positive impacts. This shouldhowever not obscure the view of more complex relationships in ecosystems, and in environment-economy andenvironment-social interactions.

i Depending on the purpose for which the PSR model is to be used, it can easily be adjusted to account for greater detailsor for specific features. Examples of adjusted versions are the Driving force - State - Response (DSR) model formerlyused by the UNCSD in its work on sustainable development indicators, the framework used for OECD sectoralenvironmental indicators and the Driving force-Pressure-State-Impact-Response (DPSIR) model used by the EEA.

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i Environmental pressures describe pressures from human activities exerted on the environment, including naturalresources. Pressures here cover underlying or indirect pressures (i.e. human activities themselves and trends andpatterns of environmental significance) as well as proximate or direct pressures (i.e. the use of resources and thedischarge of pollutants and waste materials). Indicators of environmental pressures are closely related to production andconsumption patterns; they often reflect emission or resource use intensities, along with related trends and changes overa given period. They can be used to show progress in decoupling economic activities from related environmentalpressures, or in meeting national objectives and international commitments (e.g. emission reduction targets).

i Environmental conditions relate to the quality of the environment and the quality and quantity of natural resources. As

such they reflect the ultimate objective of environmental policies. Indicators of environmental conditions are designedto give an overview of the situation (the state) concerning the environment and its development over time. Examples ofindicators of environmental conditions are: concentration of pollutants in environmental media, exceedance of criticalloads, population exposure to certain levels of pollution or degraded environmental quality and related effects on health,the status of wildlife and ecosystems and of natural resource stocks. In practice, measuring environmental conditions canbe difficult or very costly. Therefore, environmental pressures are often measured instead as a substitute.

i Societal responses show the extent to which society responds to environmental concerns. They refer to individual andcollective actions and reactions, intended to:

mitigate, adapt to or prevent human-induced negative effects on the environment; halt or reverse environmental damage already inflicted; preserve and conserve nature and natural resources.

Examples of indicators of societal responses are environmental expenditure, environment-related taxes and subsidies,price structures, market shares of environmentally friendly goods and services, pollution abatement rates, wasterecycling rates, enforcement and compliance activities. In practice, indicators mostly relate to abatement and controlmeasures; those showing preventive and integrative measures and actions are more difficult to obtain.


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OECD 2003 - 22 -

Annex III. OECD CORE ENVIRONMENTAL INDICATORS (CEI):OVERVIEW OF THE CORE SET BY ENVIRONMENTAL ISSUE

Issue Core indicators7 (8)Pressures Index of greenhouse gas emissions9 M

CO2 emissions S

CH4 emissions S/M

N2O emissions S/M

CFC emissions S/M

Conditionsi Atmospheric concentrations of greenhouse gases; Global mean temperature S

Responses Energy efficiency M/L

Energy intensity9 (total primary energy supply per unit of GDP or per capita) S

Climate change

Economic and fiscal instruments (e.g prices and taxes, expenditures) S/M

Pressuresi Index of apparent consumption of ozone depleting substances (ODP) 9 M

Apparent consumption of CFCs/ and halons

Conditions Atmospheric concentrations of ODP

Ground level UV-B radiation

S/M

Stratospheric ozone levels S/M

Ozone layerdepletion

Responses CFC recovery rate M

Pressures Emissions of N and P in water and soil Nutrient balance L

N and P from fertilizer use9 and from livestock S

Conditions BOD/DO in inland waters, in marine waters 9

Concentration of N & P in inland waters , in marine waters

S/M

Responses Population connected to biological and/or chemical sewage treatment plants M/L

Population connected to sewage treatment plants S

User charges for waste water treatment M

Eutrophication

Market share of phosphate-free detergents S/M

Pressures Index of acidifying substances M/L

Emissions of NOx and SOx S

Conditions Exceedance of critical loads of pH in water & soil M/L

Concentrations in acid precipitation SResponses % of car fleet equipped with catalytic converters S/M

Acidification

Capacity of SOx and NOx abatement equipment of stationary sources M/L

Pressures Emissions of heavy metals M/L

Emissions of organic compounds L

Consumption of pesticides 9 S/M

Conditions Concentration of heavy metals & organic compounds in env. media & in livingspecies

L

Concentration of heavy metals in rivers S/M

Responses Changes of toxic contents in products and production processes L

Toxic contamination

Market share of unleaded petrol S

Pressures Urban air emissions (SOx, NOx, VOC) M/L

Urban traffic density M/S

Urban car ownership S

Degree of urbanisation (urban population growth rates, urban land)9

S/M

Conditions Population exposure to air pollution, to noise L/M

Concentrations of air pollutants 9 S

Ambient water conditions in urban areas M/L

Responses Green space (Areas protected from urban development) M/L

Economic, fiscal and regulatory instruments M

Urban

environmental

quality

Water treatment and noise abatement expenditure S/M

7 . Indicators of the Core Set proposed by the OECD Working Group on Environmental Information and Outlooks. It presentsmain core indicators (in bold),complementary indicators to accompany the message conveyed by main indicators, and proxy indicators when the main indicator is currently notmeasurable. Indicators that are identical or similar to those proposed in the UNCSD set are marked with 9 .

8. Each character specifies the indicators measurability: S = short term, basicdata currently available for a majority of OECD countries; M=mediumterm, basicdata partially available, but calling for further efforts to improve their quality (consistency, comparability, timeliness) and their geographical coverage (numberof countries covered); L = long term, basicdata not available for a majority OECD of countries, calling for a sustained data collection and conceptual efforts.


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Issue Core indicators7 (8)

Pressures Habitat alteration and land conversion from natural stateto be further developed (e.g.. road network density, change in land cover, etc.)

L

Conditions Threatened or extinct species as a share of total species known 9 S

Area of key ecosystems9

MResponses Protected areas as % of national territory9 and by type of ecosystem S/L

Biodiversity

Protected species S

Cultural landscapes Indicators to be further developede.g. Presence of artificial elements, Sites protected for historical, cultural or aestheticreasons

Pressures Generation of waste (municipal, industrial, hazardous, nuclear) 9 S

Movements of hazardous waste S

Responses Waste minimisation (to be further developed) L

Recycling rates9 S/M

Waste

Economic and fiscal instruments, expenditures M

Pressures Intensity of use of water resources 9 (abstractions/available resources) S

Conditions Frequency, duration and extent of water shortages M/L

Water resources

Responses Water prices and user charges for sewage treatment S/M

Pressures Intensity of forest resource use 9 (actual harvest/productive capacity) M

Conditions Area9 , volume and structure of forests S/M

Forest resources

Responses Forest area management and protection(e.g. % of protected forest area in total forest area; % of harvest area successfullyregenerated of afforested)

M/L

Pressures Fish catches9 S

Conditions Size of spawning stocks M

Fish resources

Responses Fishing quotas S/M

Pressures Erosion risks: potential and actual use of land for agriculture L

Change in land use S

Conditions Degree of top soil losses M/L

Soil degradation

(desertification &

erosion)

Responses Rehabilitated areas M/L

Material resources(new issue)

Intensity of use of material resources9 (Indicators to be developed, linkto Material FlowAccounting)

Pressures Population growth & density9 S

Growth and structure of GDP 9 SPrivate & government final consumption expenditure S

Industrial production S

Structure of energy supply9 S

Road traffic volumes; S

Stock of road vehicles S

Agricultural production S

Responses Environmental expenditure M/L

Pollution abatement and control expenditure S/M

Official Development Assistance9 (indicator added on the basis of experience with environmental performance reviews)

S

Socio-economic,

sectoral and generalindicators(not attributableto specificenvironmentalissues)

Public opinion S


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Annex IV. OECD KEY ENVIRONMENTAL INDICATORS (KEI)

3P G G V U D P I D T T V @ T

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Climate change 1. CO2 emission intensities Index of greenhouse gas emissions

2.Ozone layer Indices of apparent consumption of ozonedepleting substances (ODS)

Same, plus aggregation into one index ofapparent consumption of ODS

Air quality 3. SOx and NOx emission intensities Population exposure to air pollution

4.Waste generation Municipal waste generation intensities Total waste generation intensities,Indicators derived from material flow accounting

Freshwater quality 5. Waste water treatment connection rates Pollution loads to water bodies

16 U V S 6 G S @ T P V S 8 @ T

6 T T @ U T

Freshwater resources 6. Intensity of use of water resources Same plus sub-national breakdown

Forest resources 7. Intensity of use of forest resources Same

Fish resources 8. Intensity of use of fish resources Same plus closer link to available resources

Energy resources 9. Intensity of energy use Energy efficiency index

Biodiversity 10. Threatened species Species and habitat or ecosystem diversityArea of key ecosystems

______________* indicators for which data are available for amajority of OECD countries and that arepresented in this report

______________** indicators that require further specificationand development (availability of basic datasets, underlying concepts and definitions).

These 10 indicators have proven their usefulness in charting environmental progress, and their selection has benefited from the

experience gained in using environmental indicators in the OECDs country environmental performance reviews. The list ofindicators presented here is neither final, nor exhaustive; it has to be seen together with other indicators from the OECDCore Set, and will evolve as knowledge and data availability improve. Ultimately, the set is expected to also include keyindicators for issues such as toxic contamination, land and soil resources, and urban environmental quality.


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Annex V. OECD SETS OF SECTORAL ENVIRONMENTAL INDICATORS (SEI)

Table 1. OECD set of transport-environment indicators

*Measurability*Policy

relevance

*Analytical

soundness Data availability Data quality

SECTORAL TRENDS AND PATTERNS OF ENVIRONMENTAL SIGNIFICANCE

A. Overall traffic trends and modal spliti Passenger transport trends by mode .......... 1 .......... 1 .................2 .........2/3

i Freight transport trends by mode .......... 1 .......... 1 .................2 .........2/3

i Road traffic trends and densities .......... 1 .......... 1 .............1/ 2 ............2

i Trends of airport traffic .......... 2 .......... 1 .............1/ 2 ............1

B. Infrastructurei Capital expenditure by mode .......... 1 .......... 2 .................1 ............2

i Road network length and density .......... 1 .......... 1 .................1 ............1

i Rail network length and density .......... 1 .......... 1 .................1 ............1

C. Vehicles and mobile equipmenti Road vehicle stocks .......... 1 .......... 1 .................1 ............1

i Structure of road vehicle fleet .......... 1 .......... 1 .................2 ............2

i

Private car ownership .......... 1 .......... 1 .................1 ............1D. Energy use

i Final energy consumption by the transport sector .......... 1 .......... 1 .................1 ............1

i Consumption of road fuels .......... 1 .......... 1 .................1 ............1

INTERACTIONS WITH THE ENVIRONMENT

E. Land usei Change in land use by transport infrastructure .......... 1 .......... 1 .................2 .........2/3

i Access to basic services .......... 1 .......... 2 .................3 ............3

F. Air pollutioni Transport emissions and emission intensities .......... 1 .......... 1 .................2 ............2

i Population exposed to air pollution from transport .......... 1 .......... 1 .................2 .........2/3

G. Water pollutioni Oil released from marine transport .......... 1 .......... 1 .................2 ............2

H. Noisei Population exposed to transport noise t 65db(A) .......... 1 .......... 1 .................2 .........2/3

I. Wastei Transport-related waste and related recovery rates .......... 1 .......... 1 .................2 .............-

i Hazardous waste imported or exported .......... 1 .......... 1 .................2 ............2

J. Risk and safetyi Road traffic fatalities .......... 1 .......... 1 .................1 ............2

i Hazardous material transported by mode .......... 1 .......... 1 .................2 .............-

ECONOMIC AND POLICY ASPECTS

K. Environmental damagei Environmental damage relating to transport .......... 1 .......... 1 .................3 ............3

i Social cost of transport .......... 1 .......... 1 .................3 ............3

L. Environmental expenditurei Total expenditure on pollution prevention and clean-up .......... 1 .......... 2 .................2 .............-

i

R&D expenditure on eco-vehicles .......... 1 .......... 2 .................3 .............-i R&D expenditure on clean transport fuels .......... 1 .......... 2 .................3 .............-

M. Taxation and subsidiesi Direct subsidies to transport .......... 1 .......... 2 .................3 .............-

i Total economic subsidies to transport .......... 1 .......... 2 .................3 .............-

i Relative taxation of vehicles and vehicle use .......... 1 .......... 2 .................2 .............-

N. Price structuresi Structure of road fuel prices .......... 1 .......... 1 .................1 ............1

i Trends in public transport prices .......... 1 .......... 2 .................3 ............3

O. Trade and environmenti Indicators to be developed (e.g. trends in international transport of

goods, relative importance of cross-border vs. domestic transport)...... .......... 2 .......... 2 .................2 .............-

* Classifications used for evaluating the indicators: policy relevance (1=high; 2=medium; 3=low) ; analytical soundness (1=good; 2=average; 3=poor);measurability in terms of data availability (1=short term; 2=medium term; 3=long term) and of data quality including international comparability(1=good; 2=average; 3=poor).


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OECD 2003 - 26 -

Table 2. OECD set of energy-environment indicators


relevance

*Analytical


SECTORAL TRENDS AND PATTERNS OF ENVIRONMENTAL SIGNIFICANCEA. Overall energy use and related intensities

i Total primary energy supply (TPES) and related intensities (TPESper unit of GDP and per capita)

.......... 1 .......... 1 .................1 ............1

i Total final consumption (TFC) and related intensities(TFC per unit ofGDP and per capita)

.......... 1 .......... 1 .................1 ............1

B. Energy efficienciesi Total final consumption by sector .......... 1 .......... 1 .................1 ............1

i Sectoral end uses

industry (Toe per unit of value added)

residential (Toe per capita)

commercial and public sector (Toe per sq. metre)

transport (Toe per 1000 vehicle kms)

.......... 1

.......... 1

.......... 1

.......... 1

.......... 1

.......... 1

.......... 2

.......... 1

.................1

.................1

.................1

.................1

.........1/2

............2

............1

.........1/2

i Fossil fuel efficiency for electricity generation .......... 1 .......... 1 .................1 ............1

C. Energy mixi Total primary energy supply by fuel type .......... 1 .......... 1 .................1 ............1

i Total final consumption by fuel type .......... 1 .......... 1 .................1 ............1

i Electricity generation by fuel type .......... 1 .......... 1 .................1 ............1

D. Indigenous productioni Primary energy produced nationally as per cent of total primary

energy supply

.......... 1 .......... 1 .................1 ............1

INTERACTIONS WITH THE ENVIRONMENT

E. Energy resourcesi Proven coal/oil/gas reserves in Toe .......... 1 .......... 2 .................2 ............2

F. Air pollutioni Energy emissions - CO2, NOx, SOx, etc (share in total by end uses)

and related intensities (per capita, per GDP)

.......... 1 .......... 1 .................2 ............2

G. Water pollutioni

Tonnes of oil released through accidents

on a continuous basis

.......... 1 .......... 2 .................2 ............2

H. Wastei Volume of solid waste from energy production and related intensities

(per GDP)

.......... 2 .......... 1 .................1 ............2

i Volume of radioactive waste (spent fuel) and related intensities (percapita, per GDP)

.......... 1 .......... 1 .................1 ............1

I. Land usei Land taken up by energy production, transport and transformation ..... .......... 2 .......... 1 .................2 ............2

J. Risk and safetyi Numbers killed and injured .......... 1 .......... 2 .................2 ............2

ECONOMIC AND POLICY ASPECTS

K. Environmental damagei Environmental damage relating to energy production and

consumption.......... 1 .......... 2 .................2 .............-

L. Environmental expenditurei Total expenditure on pollution prevention and clean-up .......... 1 .......... 2 .................2 ............2

i Environmentally related R&D expenditures in the energy sector .......... 1 .......... 2 .................2 ............2

i R&D expenditure on energy .......... 2 .......... 2 .................2 ............2

M. Taxation and subsidiesi Total economic subsidies to energy .. .. .. ..

i Relative taxation in per cent by different fuel types .......... 1 .......... 1 .................2 ............1

N. Price structuresi Real energy end-use prices by fuel type .......... 1 .......... 1 .................1 ............1

* Classifications used for evaluating the indicators: policy relevance (1=high; 2=medium; 3=low) ; analytical soundness (1=good; 2=average; 3=poor);measurability in terms of data availability (1=short term; 2=mediumterm; 3=long term) and of data quality including international comparability (1=good;2=average; 3=poor).


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Table 3. OECD set of sustainable household consumption indicators


relevance

*Analytical


ENVIRONMENTALLY SIGNIFICANT TRENDS AND PATTERNS

GENERAL TRENDS

Economic trendsi Expenditure shares of GDP ........... 1 ........... 1 ...........1 ...........1

i Saving rates (genuine savings) ........... 2 ........... 1 ...........1 ...........1

i Government consumption: public final consumption expenditure .. .............1 .............1 ............ 1 ............ 1

i Household consumption: private final consumption expenditure ... .............1 .............1 ............ 1 ............ 1

Socio-demographic trendsi Household size .............1 .............1 ............ 3 ............ 3

i Population structure .............1 .............1 ............ 1 ............ 1

KEY HOUSEHOLD CONSUMPTION ACTIVITIES

Transport9

and communicationi Passenger transport

trends and intensities by mode .............1 ....